Sabrina Lyn

The medal session on the opening night of the 2019 CARIFTA Championships at the Aquatic session in Barbados yielded a treasure trove of medals for Team Jamaica. The highlight of the session was yet another record breaking performance by Sabrina Lyn in the 13-14 girls 100 metre butterfly.

Sabrina Lyn ,Jamaica fastest ever junior swimmer in the 100 metre butterfly powering her way to Gold in a new PB,NAGR,CR and PAN AM B time of 1:03.19
Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

Lyn entered the final with a new personal best as well as the national age group record and Championship record of 1:03.47. Added to those accolades was the fact that she had also become Jamaica’s fastest ever junior swimmer in the record with her morning swim. In the final when the gun sounded the battle was close with the field . After the turn Lyn proved why she is the best female junior swimmer Jamaica has ever produced in the event when she pulled away for an emphatic win. The scoreboard bore that out when it revealed yet another personal best, national age group record, Championship record and PAN AM B qualifying mark of 1:03.19.Lyn , who is Jamaica’s fastest ever female swimmer in the event at CARIFTA was joined on the podium by teammate Zaneta Alvaranga .Zaneta powered her way to the Silver in 1:05.07. This is the second consecutive year Jamaica is dominating the podium. In 2018 Emily MacDonald and Alvaranga provided the one two punch atop the podium in front of their home crowd in Kingston.Lyn’s junior regional Gold medal count in the event now stands at four

2017 CARIFTA 11-12 1:07.49

2017 CCCAN 11-12 1:05.69

2018 CCCAN 13-14 1:03.82

Nathaniel Thomas double gold medallist in the 50 metre backstroke and 100 metre butterfly in the 13-14 age group
Photo courtesy of Mike Critchlow

Also in fantastic form in the 13-14 age group was her teammate Nathaniel Thomas.He broke the 28 seconds barrier to take the 50 metre backstroke Gold in a time of 27.82. This is a huge improvement for Thomas who was sixth last year in 30.12. The last time Jamaica was on top of the podium was 2011 when Olympian Timothy Wynter took Gold in 27.76. The Gold rush would not stop there as he would also take the 100 metre butterfly in a time of 59.22.The last time Jamaica featured in the podium party was 2015 when Jesse Marsh took the Bronze in 59.80.It was another big jump in performance as he finished fourth in 2018 in 1:01.53.

Emily MacDonald went from becoming the 13-14 100 metre butterfly champion in 2018 to lifting the 15-17 crown 12 months later.Emily continued the Gold medal hot streak Team Jamaica winning three consecutive races as the nation had just captured titles in the 13-14 age group.She stopped the clock in 1:05.85. This put Team Jamaica back among the medals after last being on the podium in 2016 when Kelsie Campbell won Gold in 1:04.99.

Brianna Anderson lowered her own 15-17 national record of 30.44 to 30.22 to claim Silver in the Championship final. Jamaica’s fastest ever junior sprint backstroker improved upon her 2018 position where she claimed the Bronze in a time of 31.01.

In the 13-14 age group Zaneta Alvaranga shattered her personal best of 32.49 to win the Bronze in a time of 31.77. With that swim she has put the national record of 31.02 set by Angara Sinclair on notice. She emulates Anderson’s 2017 performance when she had stopped the clock in 31.59.

In the 11-12 age group Giani Francis also issued a national record threat when she won Silver in a personal best time of 32.68. The national record stands at 32.08 set by Kendese Nangle in 2007.

Leanna Wainwright
Photo courtesy of Mike Critchlow

Jamaica dominated the podium as Leanna Wainwright at her first CARIFTA Championships which serves as her international debut and making her first ever Championship final produced the goods to win Bronze in a new personal best of 33.28.This speaks volumes of the great work being done in swimming at the western end of the island.

Francis would also take the Silver in the 100 metre butterfly with a personal best effort of 1:10.17.That ended a two year medal drought in the event for Jamaica. Teammate Brady MacPherson Lewison also earned a medal in the event in that age group .He took the Bronze in a time of 1:07.49.

Kokolo Foster on the podium after winning Silver in the 200 metre breaststroke
Photo courtesy of Mike Critchlow

The session started on a good note when Kokolo Foster dropped almost three seconds to win the Silver in the 11-12 200 metre breaststroke event in a time of 2:53.61.

In the distance events Britney Williams placed fifth overall 15-17 girls 800 metre freestyle after being the fastest in the morning heats with her time of 9:39.41. Teammate Naomi Eaton placed 11th overall with her morning effort of 10:02.80.Daniel Mair placed seventh overall after he swam 18:34.56 in the morning heats of the 13-14 boys 1500 metre freestyle , a new personal best

The 13-14 girls team of Safiya Officer 1:03.56, Raine Hopkins 1:04.70,Morgan Cogle 1:01.26 and a fantastic anchor by Sabrina Lyn in 58.32 won Silver in the 400 metre freestyle relay in 4:07.84.

The 13-14 boys team of Daniel Mair 57.17 ,Zachary Jackson Blaine 58.75,Jaedon Lynch 58.87 and Nathaniel Thomas 56.16 also won Silver in 3:50.95.

The 15-17 boys team of Nicholas Vale 55.07,Jordane Payne 56.68,Cameron Brown 55.47 and Kyle Sinclair claimed the Bronze in 3:40.66

The morning session of qualifying heats was highlighted by Sabrina Lyn’s new personal best, 13-14 national record and CARIFTA Championship record and PAN AM GAMES B time of 1:03.47 in the 100 metre butterfly. She bettered her old national record and personal best of 1:03.82 , the Championship record of 1:03.50 set in 2016 held by Bermuda’s Emma Harvey and the PAN AM Games B standard of 1:04.93. She is now the fastest ever female age group swimmer from Jamaica as the 15-17 record of 1:03.48 set by Kelsie Campbell in 2016.

Jamaica will occupy 18 lanes in individual finals tonight. There will be a national age record watch in the girls 50 metre backstroke event for all three age groups 11-12,13-14 and 15-17.Britney Williams topped the early morning heats in the 15-17 800 metre freestyle for girls with a season best of 9:39.41.Countrywoman Naomi Eaton recorded a personal best of 10:02.80.Daniel Mair had a personal best of more than 10 seconds in the 13-14 boys 1500 metre freestyle of 18:34.56 There were 15 personal best times recorded this morning.

The morning session of Day Three of the Walter Rogers Age Group Champs had as the highlight the obliteration of the girls 13-14 400 metre freestyle relay record by the Tornadoes team.

Record setting Tornadoes 13-14 girls 400 freestyle relay team
from left to right Aliyah Heaven,Ireland Hunter, Sabrina Lyn and Isabella Sierra
Photo courtesy of Mike Critchlow

Since 2011 the old record had stood to the visiting Stingrays Swim Club of the Cayman Islands .The standard had stood to the team of Bethany Cleaver,Coral Tomascik,Lois Moody and Danielle Boothe. On Saturday Feb 23 the Tornadoes team of Isabella Sierra, Ireland Hunter, Aliyah Heaven and Sabrina Lyn laid waste to that time as they stopped the clock in a time of 4:16.80.They recorded the fastest female relay time of the day as well as beating back their opposition by more than 30 seconds.

Their teammates in the 13-14 boys age category got in on the record breaking act with a new standard setting swim of their own.The record in their sights belonged the 2015 Tornadoes team of Alex Mignott,Sean -Douglas Gooden,Jonathan Lyn and Jesse Marsh of 3:58.91.The team of Zachary Jackson-Blaine,Adrian Balfour,Daniel Mair and Nathaniel Thomas lowered that time to 3:57.85.

The fastest relay time of the day was posted by the Y Speedos team of Jordane Payne,Chester Adams, Akeem Alleyne and Kyle Sinclair of 3:52.33.

Sean-Douglas Gooden
CARIFTA 2017
Photo courtesy of Michael C Lyn

In the 200 metre series Sean Douglas-Gooden of Tornadoes won his seventh title breaststroke in the event over the last eight years in a time of 2:40.57. Since his last year of 11-12 Gooden has been unbeaten save for a disqualification in 2015.

Britney Williams of Swimaz Aquatics , the fastest ever locally trained mid to long distance freestyler and the defending CARIFTA champion ensured she was unbeaten in her three years of the 15-17 category as she took her event in a season best of 2:12.61.

There were also a number of close races as Safiya Officer of Swimaz just outlasted Sierra of Tornadoes in the girls 13-14 200 metre freestyle 2:22.52 to 2:22.98.Nathaniel Thomas got the decision over teammate Daniel Mair in the boys 13-14 race 2:08.35 to 2:08.85.

The fastest times of the day came from Y Speedos duo of Kyle Sinclair and Chester Adams who battled to the wall in times of 2:03.72 and 2:04.14 respectively.Other Gold medals decided in the morning were

The second night of action at the 2019 Walter Rogers Age Group Championships got underway on the perfect note in the very first event contested , the girls 11-12 100 metre breaststroke. This as Kokolo Foster of the Tornadoes Swim club stormed to victory in the event with an advantage of almost ten seconds to set a new 11-12 age group record of 1:18.51 (split time .

Danielle Boothe
Photo courtesy of Liberty University Swimming and diving

That performance lowered the 2009 Championship record held by Danielle Boothe of 1:20.31. Boothe would go on to have a very successful CARIFTA championships that year in Aruba winning Three Gold , Four Silver and a Bronze. In Aruba Boothe would set the former national record of 1:19.89 en route to the Gold medal.In that 11-12 breaststroke final included The Bahamas Laura Morley of Indiana and Aruba Daniela Van Den Berg of Florida State University are currently competing in the Big Ten and Atlantic Coast (ACC) Conferences NCAA Division I .In Boothe’s lasting outing for Jamaica she was part of the record setting 400 metre medley relay team that competed at the 2015 PAN American Games

2015 PAN AM Games 400 metre medley relay
from left to right
Trudiann Patrick, Alia Atkinson, Breanna Roman and Danielle BootheSabrina Lyn stroking to the wall en route to a new personal best in the 100 metre breaststroke
Photo courtesy of Michael C Lyn

The Gold in girls 13-14 age group went to Foster’s teammate Sabrina Lyn who lowered her championship record of 1:18.42 that she set in the heats to 1:17.51 to take Gold.

Octivia Gray of UWI
Photo courtesy of Lynval Lowe

The 15 and over Gold medal was won by another swimmer who competed at CARIFTA 2009, Octivia Gray of the Marlins Swim Club .She turned back the hands of time to take the win in 1:25.76. In 2009 she had won the Bronze medal in this event in a time of 1:21.61

The fastest time of the night came from Chester Adams of the Y Speedos who won in a personal best time of 1:10.90 to take the 15 and over crown.

The 2018 edition of the ISSA Championships saw Immaculate Conception High School and Campion College retaining their titles. Immaculate won the female title amassing 519 points down from their 575 total last year. Campion College girls and St Andrew high School finished second and third scored 373 and 255 points increasing their tally from 2017. In the boys section Campion College boys retained their title with a points score of 442.50 points widening their winning advantage by over 100 points as Wolmer’s Boys placed second with 338 points. Third went to Kingston College with 199 points more than doubling their points performance from 2017.

Twelve individual meet records were broken and the relay standards were reset five times. Fittingly the top record setters came from the winning schools Nathaniel Thomas of Campion College in the 13-14 age group and Zaneta Alvaranga of Immaculate also in the same age group.

Nathaniel Thomas

Thomas was prolific in setting meet records in the 50 metre backstroke,50 metre freestyle, 100 metre freestyle and Campion’s relays in the 13-14 200 metre freestyle and medley relays.He won the high point trophy for his age group with 27 points. In the very first event event Thomas crushed his personal best of 29.69 and the meet record of 29.70 by Kyle Sinclair to record the fastest time ever swum at the meet of 28.85.The previous best ever performance was 28.89 done by national age group standout Todd Johnson of Wolmer’s Boys in 2003 in the 17 and over age group

In speaking to draftingthecaribbean he said “there is still work to be done and he hopes to better his times again at the next meet” .He said he “was relaxed and focused for the start of each race”. At CARIFTA 2018 held in Kingston earlier this year he had placed sixth while battling illness . His time on Friday would have won him the Silver medal in the event.

Campion college 13-14 200 metre freestyle relay from left to right Daniel Mair,Thomas, Joshua Alleyne and Jaleel Samms Photo courtesy of Jodi Mair

In all his individual races Thomas had the fastest performances of the meet. The quality of those swims extended to the relays and the combined efforts of his teammates that posted the top times in the freestyle and medley relays. In the freestyle relay the team of Daniel Mair, Joshua Alleyne, Jaleel Samms and Thomas posted the best time of the meet of 1:49.01.In the 200 medley relay the quartet of Thomas, Joshua Mair , Samms and Daniel Mair were the best on the day posting a time of 2:02.38

Campion College record breaking 13-14 200 metre medley relay from left to right Daniel Mair,Jaleel Samms, Joshua Mair and Thomas Photo courtesy of Jodi Mair

THOMAS RECORDS

Event

Time

Old record

50 metre backstroke

28.85

29.70

50 metre freestyle

25.47

25.48

100 metre freestyle

55.71

55.98

200 metre freestyle relay

1:49.01

1:49.14

200 metre medley relay

2:02.38

2:04.76

Zaneta Alvaranga Photo courtesy of Cheser Adams

Alvaranga was equally as dominant in her events. She won four individuals and a relay event all in meet record time. Zaneta amassed 36 points. Arguably her best race of the meet was the 50 metre butterfly where she took off more than a second off the record of 31.04 to record a time of 29.61, the first ever sub 30 seconds clocking of the meet. Also under the record was Campion’s Paig’e Lewis who won Silver 30.71. Alvaranga is the reigning CARIFTA Silver medallist in this event. In the 50 metre breaststroke she and Campion ‘s Sabrina Lyn got under the old meet record of 37.38 with Gold and Silver medal winning times of 36.46 and 37.02 respectively.She combined with Imani Salmon, Brooke Hopkins and Safiya Officer to down the 2016 meet record of Campion College of 2:19.07 to post the fastest time ever at the meet of 2:13.52.

As it was on the first two days of the 2018 Dean Martin Memorial meet in Kingston Jamaica so it was on the final day Sunday October 28 where Jillian Crooks of Camana Bay Aquatics continued the constant assault on the Cayman Islands 11-12 age group records.

In her first event of the day she raised the bar for her age group in the 100 metre butterfly. The 11-12 meet record stood to Jamaican standout Zaneta Alvaranga at 1:08.85 in 2017 which was also the fastest time by a female swimmer at the meet, Jillian’s 11-12 Cayman record was 1:06.87 from her CCCAN Gold medal performance in Aruba and the best ever 11-12 time in Jamaica was 1:05.98 by another wunderkind Bermuda’s Elan Daley in her Gold medal winning performance at CARIFTA 2018. Jillian would blast through all of those times to record a winning time of 1:04.54. Her opening split of 30.21 almost broke her 50 metre butterfly record of 30.08.Crooks has made considerable progress since her first regional meet of 2018 which was UANA where she recorded a time of 1:12.43.

100 butterfly

UANA

CCCAN

Dean Martin

First 50

33.95

32.64

30.21

Second 50

38.48

36.67

34.33

Final Time

1:12.43

1:09.31

1:04.54

Olympian Heather Roffey Photo courtesy of gamecocksonline.com

Still in only her first year of the 11-12 age group she is already faster than the Cayman Islands 13-14 record held by Olympian Heather Roffey (Athen 2004) of 1:05.62 and is closing fast on the senior record of Lara Butler (Rio 2016) of 1:04.10. Her winning time at Dean Martin would have won her the Silver medal in the boys race at CARIFTA earlier in the year

She would not finish with her record breaking in the butterfly but also extended that to the 200 metre backstroke. Jillian would slice a few hundredths off her PB and national record of 2:33.98 to register a winning time of 2:33.91 . That now stands at the 11-12 record and fastest ever female time of the meet. The old 11-12 meet record was held by Kendese Nangle of the Blue Seals swim club from 2007 who posted a time of 2:42.95.

Emily MacDonald Photo courtesy of Mike C Lyn

She would close out the meet with a meet record in the 50 metre freestyle record of 27.78 just eclipsing the 2016 meet record of 27.79 by CAC and Youth Olympics representative Emily MacDonald of Swimaz Aquatics. Crooks now dominates the LCM record board for the Cayman Islands in the 11-12 age group and has a chance to lower the CARIFTA and CCCAN records in those events in 2019.

Event

Crooks Cayman

CARIFTA

CCCAN

CCCAN best/Country

50 metre freestyle

27.25

26.59

27.46

26.59 Ber

100 metre freestyle

59.93

1:00.06

59.65

58.12 Ber

200 metre freestyle

2:15.17

2:10.26

2:10.24

2:08.16 Ber

50 metre backstroke

32.11

31.52

30.78

30.78 Tri

100 metre backstroke

1:08.40

1:08.69

1:07.14

1:06.65 Tri

200 metre backstroke

2:33.91

2:29.11

2:26.35

2:25.91 Mex

100 metre breaststroke

1:23.60

1:14.60

1:14.39

1:13.33 Tri

50 metre butterfly

30.08

28.87

28.74

28.74 Jam

100 metre butterfly

1:04.54

1:05.98

1:05.55

1:04.46 Ber

200 metre IM

2:34.88

2:27.95

2:27.38

2:25.21 Ber

Continuing his own meet record smashing streak was Zarek Wilson of the Blue Dolphins Swim club of Trinidad and Tobago. He recorded the fastest ever time at the meet of 4:30.45 while destroying the 11-12 record of Sean -Douglas Gooden of 4:51.45.In his final event of the competition he clocked 26.20 just missing the 2017 record of 26.16 set by Nathaniel Thomas of the Tornadoes swim club.

Sabrina Lyn National record holder in the 13-14 100 metre butterfly Photo courtesy of Cheser Adams

In one of the most exciting races of the day in the 13-14 age group in the 100 metre butterfly which saw the 2018 CARIFTA Silver medallist Zaneta Alvaranga of the Kaizen Swim Club in a head to head battle with the 2018 CCCAN Gold medallist and national record holder Sabrina Lyn of the Tornadoes. It would be Alvaranga’s fast opening 50 metres that proved to be the difference as she held off a late charge from Lyn. They would finish in times of 1:05.24 and 1:05.56 well under the 2008 record of 1:10.86. Also finishing under the record was P’aige Lewis of the Y Speedos who recorded a time of 1:10.57.

Alvaranga would return to close out her individual races with an emphatic win in the 50 metre freestyle in a time of 27.23 . That shattered the 2016 meet record of 28.38 by 2018 Commonwealth Games competitor Alison Jackson of the Stingrays Swim Club of the Cayman Islands.The performance will also stand as the fastest ever female time at the meet.

Also in record standard setting mode was Thomas of the Tornadoes Swim Club in the 13-14 age category. In the 100 metre butterfly he set a new personal best time of 1:00.54 to take the win and break the meet record of 1:01.80. He would top the 13-14 field in the 50 metre freestyle with a time of 25.12 ,just under the old record of 25.16 in yet another personal best.He will be targeting the 2004 national record of 24.47 set by another Tornadoes swimmer Brad Hamilton.

In the 15-16 category Jordan Crooks of Camana Bay Aquatics produced the meet’s first ever sub minute swim in the 100 metre butterfly when he touched the pads in 59.83.In the 15 and over category of the 50 metre freestyle he held off two members of Jamaica’s national record setting 15-17 200 metre freestyle team at CARIFTA Jordan Hines of the Tornadoes Swim Club and Kyle Sinclair of the Y Speedos to be the fastest sprinter in the history of the meet. He cut through the water to touch in 24.60. Hines was a touch back in 24.61 and Sinclair ,the final sub 25 seconds swimmer with a 24.80. Both Jordans won their respective 15-16 and 17-18 age groups.

The Y Speedos Swim club retained their crown with 845 points followed by the Tornadoes Swim club with 745 and the Marlins swim club third with 256 points.

The afternoon session of the Dean Martin Memorial Swim meet on October 27 saw Jillian Crooks of Camana Bay Aquatics again breaking more Cayman Islands 11-12 national records. Joining her in the record breaking party was Zarek Wilson of the Blue Dolphins of Trinidad and Tobago who also lowered the English speaking record 11-12 butterfly record.

Zarek Wilson Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

It would be Wilson who started the record breaking in the 200 metre butterfly. Zarek already held the fastest English speaking Caribbean mark in the 11-12 age group when he had set the bar at 2:20.25 at meet earlier in the month. As the race was open he would test his skills with older swimmers . He did not waste the opportunity as he and Jordane Payne of the Y Speedos battled for the majority of the race for supremacy. In the end it would Wilson prevailing and becoming the first 11-12 English speaking swimmer under 2:20. He touched in a time of 2:17.82 .

Race analysis

200 butterfly

Splits

First 50

30.50

Second 50

35.30

Third 50

37.41

Fourth 50

34.61

Final Time

2:17.82

Damon St Prix Photo courtesy of swimbarbados.com

Records bettered on the way to his new mark was the meet standard of 2:33.52 set by Nathaniel Thomas and the fastest time set in Jamaica by an 11-12 boy of 2:22.71 in 2013 by Damon St Prix at CARIFTA 2013. Also downed was the fastest time recorded at the meet of 2:20.91 by Payne in 2017. When he was in Jamaica for the CARIFTA Championships and won this event he had recorded a time of 2:23.22. In his sights before he enters the 13-14 age group will be the all time 11-12 CCCAN record of 2:15.69 set by Mexico’s Joshua Laisequilla in 2011. Payne would top the 15-16 swimmers and better his own record with a clocking of 2:20.86.

Zarek would also record the fastest time for the meet when he won the 400 IM in a time of 5:18.30. That bettered the 2015 mark of 5:24.99 held by Zachary Moore of the Stingray Swim Club of the Cayman Islands.

Crooks would set her national marks in the 200 metre freestyle and 100 metre breaststroke. In the freestyle event would see Crooks, the 2018 CCCAN Bronze medallist in event battling with the CCCAN Gold medallist and national record holder Jamaican Morgan Cogle of Jupiter Dragons. Crooks would take the win in Kingston as both swimmer went under the 2016 record of 2:19.16 held by the former Jamaican national record holder in the event Emily MacDonald of Swimaz. Crooks would touch in 2:15.17 with Cogle second in 2:17.00. Crooks previous best and national record from CCCAN stood at 2:16.95.

In the 100 metre breaststroke she was not the first to wall as Kokolo Foster of the Tornadoes Swim club lead her to the pads in a time of 1:23.18. Jillian touched just behind in 1:23.60. Both swimmers bettered the 2008 record of 1:24.19 held by Octivia Gray of the Marlins Swim Club. Crooks bettered the 2015 national record of Alison Jackson of 1:24.96.

Alison Jackson Photo courtesy ofcaymansportsbuzz.com

100 breaststroke

Jackson 2015

Crooks 2018

First 50

39.62

39.07

Second 50

45.34

44.53

Final Time

1:24.96

1:23.60

Jordan and Jillian Crooks Photo courtesy of Lynval Lowe

Brother Jordan , a 2018 Youth Olympics competitor and flag bearer would also set meet marks in Kingston . He took down the record in the 15-16 boys 100 metre freestyle of 55.48 with a time of 54.42. Battling him to the wall was Kyle Sinclair of the Y Speedos timed in 55.02. In the same race teammates from the Tornadoes Swim Club Jordan Hines and Sean -Douglas Gooden topped the 17-18 division with swims of 57.41 and 58.26 respectively and were both under the meet standard of 59.26.

The 200 metre freestyle would see Jordan lowering the 15-16 mark of 2:05.00 by Stingrays Jonathan Key and recording the best time ever done at Dean Martin with a 2:01.05 performance (split time 58.68).

Morgan Cogle 11-12 400 IM winner Photo courtesy of Cheser Adams

Cogle would bounce back from the 200 freestyle to record the fastest time ever done by a girl at the meet when she stopped the clock in 5:39.56. that swim broke the 11-12 record of 5:47.56 by Ria Plunkett of the Stingrays Swim Club in 2015.It is also faster than the best mark ever at the meet , the 15-16 record of 5:39.99 by Breanna Roman of Swimaz Aquatics.

Other notable records on the day saw the Tornadoes duo of Sabrina Lyn and Sean -Douglas Gooden taking down the breaststroke records in the 13-14 and 17-18 age groups respectively with swims of 1:19.74 and 1:11.45.